Missoula police: Investigation continues into Mountain Line death threats

By Martin KidstonNovember 13, 2017

The Missoula Police Department continues its investigation into a series of death threats made to Mountain Line employees in the days following the mass shooting outside San Antonio, Texas, earlier this month.

In the meantime, Mountain Line said it has taken precautions and will continue to operate its routes as normal.

“What happened was, we received a number of voicemail threats from the same individual,” said Bill Pfeiffer, community outreach coordinator with Mountain Line. “They weren’t directed to the riders, but rather they were specific threats made to Mountain Line employees.”

Pfeiffer believes the threats involving gun violence were scripted, though the caller began to improvise as the calls continued. The number was blocked and police were notified, he said.

The Missoula Police Department is continuing with is investigation.

“We’re still trying to identify who left the voicemail,” said department spokesman Travis Welsh. “We can’t afford to take anything like this lightly.”

Pfeiffer said the transportation agency followed internal threat procedures when the calls were made. A company-wide email noting the threat was immediately issued to all employees, he said, and drivers were told to be vigilant.

Such safety discussions arise in staff meetings on a regular basis, Pfeiffer said, and the organization has established protocols involving threats of violence.

“This is the first threat of this nature that any of the supervisors can remember, though it’s something we plan for,” said Pfeiffer. “We take all threats seriously regardless of the nature. The safety of our employees and passengers is our number one priority.”

Pfeiffer said the buses continue to run on schedule.

“It really did not affect anything at all,” he said. “Operations has been monitoring it.”

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